


A Warm Embrace

by Braangster



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-15
Updated: 2017-11-15
Packaged: 2019-02-03 01:51:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12738609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Braangster/pseuds/Braangster
Summary: It takes a long time for things to return to normal, or something close to it. Even months after everything with the Mind Flayer is over and done with, Will still tosses and turns nightly, waking up with a gasp or a choked sob.





	A Warm Embrace

**Author's Note:**

> This was a kiss fic request from Tumblr!! The request was for top of the head kisses. I wrote this really fast so it's kind of rushed, but it's also the first thing I've actually written in a Long time so i hope yall like it!!

It takes a long time for things to return to normal, or something close to it. Even months after everything with the Mind Flayer is over and done with, Will still tosses and turns nightly, waking up with a gasp or a choked sob. The nightmares have been happening since his initial return from the Upside Down, of course, but they’ve been worse recently.  _ Literal possession can do that to you _ , Will thinks bitterly.

In the beginning, he tried to skip out on sleepovers with his friends, out of embarrassment and not wanting to wake them up or bother them after a particularly bothersome nightmare. Eventually, Lucas and Dustin had cornered him after school, complaining that they missed him and “Please,  _ please  _ just come tonight. Mike has been working on this campaign for days….” and Will just couldn’t say no. And yes, he learned that he could survive sleepovers with his friends….as long as he stayed up, refusing to let sleep overtake him, fearing that a bout of nightmares would return with his friends around him.

He knows it’s silly. Will Byers may have some problems, but he knows how much his friends love him, and he knows they wouldn’t be upset if he woke up crying at a sleepover. They’d comfort him and tell him everything is okay and make sure he’s fine before rolling over and going back to bed, probably forgetting about it in the morning because that’s just normal for Will. And Will knows this! He knows this, and he loves his friends for it, but he just wants to feel normal. He doesn’t want to disrupt the normalcy of a sleepover with a choked sob in the middle of the night, so he just doesn’t let it happen. In the dark hours of the night in the Wheeler’s basement, Will will just wrap himself tightly in his blanket, keeping a watchful eye on his sleeping friends, thankful for their presence. 

A few months into their freshman year of high school, Mike’s parents decide to take a vacation. Will doesn’t know where to (“Mom won’t tell me,” Mike says with a shrug, and Will doesn’t push it), but it means that Mike is spending the night at his house for the next few days. Mike knows about Will's nightmares because of  _ course  _ he does, he’s his best friend, but they’ve been getting worse lately (The phrase _ anniversary effect  _ echos in Will’s ears), and Will doesn’t want to keep Mike up all night. 

But, of course, Mike sets up his sleeping bag right next to Will’s bed that night like he always does, and Will can only pray that the night terrors will be kept at bay for the next few nights,  _ please _ . And when he wakes up at 2am with a strangled sob and immediately begins gasping for air, taking in his surroundings, it seems like Mike is up right away, scrambling to grab onto Will in the dark of his room. It’s been awhile since Will has allowed himself to be comforted because, while he knows his mom and Jonathan love him, they need sleep too, and waking them up every night for comfort was starting to wear them down, so he was used to calming himself down after these episodes. So, when Mike pulls himself up onto Will’s bed and pulls him close, pulls Will’s head to Mike’s chest, so Will can hardly hear Mike’s mindless words of comfort over the beating of his heart, he’s stiff at first before allowing himself to completely relax and collapse against Mike’s chest. 

He’s trying not to cry, but not from the dreams. Mike’s arms around him, rubbing comforting circles in his back, muttering, “You’re okay, you’re okay, I got you, you’re fine,” against his hair, just feels so right, so comfortable, so much like home. He can feel himself clutching at Mike’s sides tight, but if it’s hurting Mike, he doesn’t say anything. He just presses himself against the top of Will’s head, and Will isn’t quite sure whether Mike is kissing him or just resting his head there. And Will, who did not realize just how touch starved he evidently is, presses himself closer to Mike, just allowing himself be held and comforted for the first time in a long time. After a bit, Mike stops rubbing his back, and his breathing evens out, so Will thinks he must have fallen asleep, and he finally, finally allows himself to do the same.

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you like it!! find me on tumblr @richardgoranski !!


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